Wednesday Evening Message: Guest Speaker - Tom Mason

How is everybody doing? All right, All right.

Welcome to Summertime Wednesday Nights Christ Community Church.

Let's open with prayer. Father, We do thank you for your

great grace toward us. We thank you for Jesus Christ

our Lord. We thank you for the privilege

of prayer. We ask now that you would direct

us in our time that we might honor you, and all that we do.

We pray to this in Jesus name. Amen.

Tonight we will be in First John.

For some of you it would be the first time that you've heard me

teach from First John. For others of you and you will

remember that we have been going through First John for a while.

But the last time I spoke on 1st John was Wednesday night, March

4th, 2020. So Needless to say, we going to

have to do some catching up to see what it is that we have

been, what it is that we have learned and then have an

opportunity to move forward. And in moving forward then we

will have an opportunity to catch up and move on as we have

those times together. So when we think of first John,

we think of the author, the name has been given because it

relates to the apostle John. There's no argument about who

the author is. The setting writing would have

been somewhere around a D90 to 95.

At the time of the writing, John was in Ephesus and although he

was the youngest of the apostles when chosen, now he is a man

that is well aged and out of that wisdom he writes as he is

inspired by the Holy Spirit in Asia Minor, what is today

Turkey. In that area.

It was a hotbed of false religions, cults, philosophies,

worshippers of emperors, and there was no shortage of objects

of worship, with inclusivism being the watchword for the day.

Whatever religion you came up with, you had to have it to

where everybody could get a piece of it, no matter what it

is that they believe. And then here it is.

John comes along and he writes first John, and he's writing it

from the idea of exclusive. It was as if John was saying to

them, all roads may lead to Rome, but there's only one way

to have it, and that heaven is exclusively through Jesus Christ

our Lord. And so he comes and he presents

his writings and he is setting up that he might help the people

of that area understand the truth.

And when you are set out for your intentions to be to talk

about the truth, the opposite of truth would be a lie.

OK, so John sits his whole writings to always give 2

examples. And I like what John MacArthur

says about that. He says he in his writings.

In both John and this epistle, he puts out a series of

comparisons of two. Never with a third entry.

For instance, when he talks about light and darkness, he

doesn't add in there a shade of Gray.

He wants you to understand that the contrast is between light

and darkness. He talks about love and hate.

He talks about in the world or out of the world.

He talks about the fact that there is death and there is

life. He wants us to understand that

there are comparisons, but the comparisons are best known when

you just deal with the two. So as we look at this writing

tonight, we want to be able to keep that in mind.

Whether he's talking about light or darkness, whether he's

talking about truth or lies, whether he's talking about the

love of the Father or the love of the world, you will always

see John bring it down the two. And then in doing so, he's

trying to help us. Not to be confused, but there

are times that we simply confuse ourselves.

Other day, Don and I was at home and there was a knock on the

door and we, I, I make it to the door.

And there was 2 Jehovah Witnesses and they was telling

me that you have to bring comfort to folks.

Those people are confused. People need to be made

uncomfortable. And matter of fact, when I

describe to them what you are to share with those who are outside

of Christ, they said, oh you, you would scare people if you

tell them. My idea is I would love to scare

them out of that pit that they're in or hit it to.

John wants us to understand that there is truth and there is

error, and he wants us to understand that when we head in

that direction of truth, that there is no alternative.

We must follow the truth. So as we look at what we've

covered, we've started back with John.

First John chapter one, verse one, what was from the

beginning. John wants to take them all the

way back to the beginning of the gospel and say to them that we

are still teaching the same thing that Christ taught when he

was here on earth. And you can go back to Matthew

Matthew 4:7

chapter 4 verses 7, chapter 4 verses 12 to 17.

It says. Now when Jesus heard that John

had been taken into custody, he departed into Galilee and

leaving Nazareth he came and lived in Caprinium, which is by

the sea in the region of Lebanon and Nepali.

In order that what was spoken in Isaiah the prophet would be

fulfilled, Jesus is ready to start his ministry.

And how does he started? He started by fulfilling the

scripture. Look at verse 15 in Matthew

Matthew 4 · chapter mention

chapter 4. It says in the land of Lebazon

and the land of Naphtholi, by the way of the sea beyond the

Jordan, the Galilee of the Gentiles, the people who were

sitting in darkness was saw a great light, and those who were

sitting in the land and shadow of death upon them a light

dawned. From that time Jesus began to

preach and say repent for the Kingdom of heaven is at hand.

So when John makes this statement, what was from the

beginning, He says that has been true from that time in Jesus's

ministry. And here we are some 60, some

years later and he says we're still preaching the same thing.

We want people to repent and to come to a point of understanding

that Jesus is the only way to heaven.

The false teachers of that day taught that the knowledge of

God's provision for you must be reached to some higher level of

spiritual awakening, which then would put you in some elite

class. Then and only then could you

know what God had for you. But John would come along and he

would start to write. And when he says, I write to you

little children, he's not talking about an elite class.

He's talking about people like you and me.

I write unto you, little children, that you might

understand the way to God. And he was directly in contrast

to what the false teachers were saying.

And in these first four verses, John has shown us what is the

truth compared to the false teachers.

He goes on to say what we have heard, what we have seen with

our eyes, what we have looked at and touched with our hands

concerning the word of life. And the life was manifested, and

we have seen and testified and proclaimed to you that eternal

life which was with the Father and was manifested unto us what

we have seen and heard, we proclaim to you so that you may

have fellowship with us. And indeed our fellowship is

with the Father and with His Son, Jesus Christ.

These things we write to you so our joy may be complete.

This Word fellowship, it's a partnership.

It's a sharing in common, he says.

I want you to know that our fellowship is with the Father

and with his Son, Jesus Christ, and we want you to share in that

fellowship with us believers. That's what you and I have been

left on this earth for. So we can share with others how

we have a fellowship with the Father and how we want them to

share that fellowship with us. But then as he moves on through

this letter, he would talk about this fellowship and how it is

that it is to be announced and how it is to be sent out so

others might hear it. In verse five, he said, this is

the message that we have heard from him and announced to you

that God is light. Wow, what's the opposite of

light? Darkness, he says.

God is light and there is no darkness in him at all.

None. God is light, and in God there

is no darkness at all. He's setting up something here

for us. He wants us to understand if our

life is tracking in darkness. God is not in us.

That's what he is bringing out here.

Matthew chapter 5, verse 14 says you are light of the world, a

Matthew 5:14

city sit up on the hill that cannot be hidden.

Jesus is making this statement to his disciples that would

apply to you and to me today. We are light of the world.

We are a city that is set on the hill that cannot be hidden.

He wants us to understand that Paul would pick up on this in

Philippian chapter 2, verses 14 and 15.

He says do all things without complaining and and arguments,

so that you will prove yourselves to be blameless and

innocent children of God above reproach, in the midst of a

crooked and perverse generation among whom you appear as lights

in the world. Wow.

Paul saw the world of his time as crooked and perversed.

I wonder how he would see it today.

But notice what hasn't changed, you and I, or to appear to them

as lights in the world. And he wants us to understand

that John said. I want to declare to you that

God is light first John chapter one verse 7 says, But we walk in

the light as he himself is in the light and we have fellowship

with one another. And the blood of Jesus Christ

his Son cleanses us from all sin, doesn't clean us from some

sin, cleans us from all sin. First John chapter 2, verse 8.

1 John 2:8

He says On the other hand, I have written to you a new

commandment to you which is true in him and in you, because the

darkness is passing away and the true light is already shining.

That's how he refers to the true light is already here.

We're here to take this message out.

Look at the next verse first John 29 he says the one who says

that he is in the light and yet hate his brother is in the

darkness until now. Translation the one who says he

is a Christian but hate his brother.

He says he is in the darkness to now he says he's no Christian at

all. Why?

Because the very thing that God is bringing to us is love.

And if we don't have that love for one another then there is no

God in us. That's what he is pointing out

to us. The one who loves his brother

remains in the light, and there is nothing in him that would

cause him to stumble. The Christian is going to love

his brother, and by doing that he remains in the light and

there's nothing there for him to stumble over.

We have the light in us and therefore there is and no

stumbling for us back to first John six.

I'm sorry, first John one verse 6.

If we say that we have fellowship with him and walk in

darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth.

But if we walk in the light, as he himself is in the light, we

have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus

Christ cleanses us from all the sin.

If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves and the

truth of God is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is

faithful and righteous to forgive us of our sins and to

cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

If we say that we have not sin, we make him out to be a lie, and

his word is not in us. Wow, just full of good

information for us. If we say that we have

fellowship with him and walking darkness, we lie and do not

practice the truth. But by walking in the light it

helps us to understand that the blood of Jesus Christ cleanses

us from all sin. If we say that we have no sin.

Now when he says we he's actually talking about

Christians. If you claim to be a Christian

and you say that you have no sin, he says that you May God

ought to be a lie. But since we Christians have

sinned, he says in verse 9, if we confess our sins, He's

faithful and just to forgive us of our sins and cleanse us from

all unrighteousness. If we say we have never sinned,

we make him out to be a liar and his word is not in ours.

John lays this out for us that we might clearly understand what

it is that he's trying to take us to.

Let's look at first John chapter 2.

1 John 2 · chapter mention

My little children, I write these things to you so that you

may not sin. And if in this one sin we have

an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous, and

He Himself is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours

only, but also for the sins of the whole world.

When we think of Scripture, don't think of an epistle as a

book written. It was not.

It was a letter that is written. So he didn't finish with chapter

one and say, okay, let me start chapter 2.

He's simply continuing his letter.

But he he points out to us that the whole thing is that we would

not sin. He says, But if anyone sins, do

we have an advocate? We have one who speaks on our

behalf and he says he is Jesus Christ the righteous, and he

himself is the perpetuation satisfaction for our sins and

not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world.

And I know we we talked about earlier that John writes in

comparisons and he always just gives two.

He never gives a third one. Some commentators, when they get

to this verse, they want to throw a third group in.

So well, maybe he's including just the believing Jews.

Why would he do that? His comparison is between the

world and us. He says he's the satisfaction

for our sins and he says it goes further than that.

He's not just the satisfaction for our sins, but he's the

satisfaction for the sins of the world.

Jesus Christ came and died for the sins of the whole world.

Then why isn't everybody going to heaven?

Because of sin? And John tells us that light

came into the world. But because men love their

darkness, they love their sin. They stayed in the dark.

And that's why people today are still in darkness.

The Geo witnesses that came by my house, they think they're

carrying a light, they are in darkness.

They are out there trying to bring comfort to a Sinner.

Sinner has no comfort. He needs to get into a

discomfort situation to where he knows he is on his way to hell

for eternity. But God has provided an an

alternative. That's the message that we

carry. Matter of fact, she told me.

She says you try to scare people.

No, I don't. I try to share with people the

truth. And so these are the things that

we John says that he's the perpetuation for the sins of the

whole world. Now guess who I'm going to

believe the scripture or commentator.

I'm going to believe in the scripture If when he says it's

the whole world, it's the whole world.

And then chapter 2, verse three, he says by this we know that we

have come to know him if we keep his commandments.

Everybody want to talk about I I know God, I love God.

But when you start talking about people keeping God's

commandments, they want no part of that, he says, and this we

know that we have come to know Him if we keep His commandments.

The one who says I have come to know him and does not keep his

commandments is a liar and the truth is not in him.

But whoever keeps his word in him, the love of God has been

perfected. John said You can say all you

want to I'm a Christian. But if you do not keep God's

commandments, you are a liar and the truth is not in you.

Now read it. Read it for yourself.

I I'm that's not my word. Those are John's word inspired

by the the Holy Spirit. Why?

Because he doesn't want us going the wrong direction.

Think and we are on our way to heaven, he goes on to say in

verse 6. The one who says I abide in him,

ought himself to walk in the same manner as he was.

When you see that word walk is talking about conduct yourself,

We ought to conduct ourselves in the same manner that Christ

conducted himself. That's how you tell whether you

are walking in the light or not. Then chapter 2, verse 15.

He said do not love the world or the things that are in the

world. If anyone loved the world, the

love of the Father is not in him.

For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, the lust

of the eyes and the boastful pride of life is not from God

but from the world. The world is passing away and

also it's lost. But the one who does the will of

God will live forever. The one who does what God says,

that person will live forever. That's the message that John is

bringing. He wants us to understand that

there's a way to live and there's a way not to live.

He goes through, and he described this to us.

Look at verse 18, the same chapter, children.

It is the last hour. And just as you've heard that

the Antichrist is coming, even now many antichrists have

appeared. From this we know that it is the

last hour they went out from us, but they were not really of us.

If they had been of us, they would have remained with us, but

they went out so that it would be shown that they are all not

of us. But you have an anointing from

the Holy One and you all know he said they went out from us, but

they never was up. Now this isn't talking about

people who leave Christ Community Church and go to

another church. It's not talking about that at

all. But if you left Christ Community

Church and you went join the Jehovah Witnesses, then yes, he

would. That's that's when he would be

talking about these people was in the church.

They sung out of the same hymn books that all of them sung.

They heard the same message, but they got to this point and said,

guys, we have risen above you and we have some knowledge that

you don't have. So we going to leave?

John said don't worry about them.

They went out because they never was a part of us.

If they had been of us, they would have stayed with us.

Every Christian that has ever come to Christ stays with

Christ. Those who come in and leave,

they left because they never were Christians in the 1st

place. By the way, the guy who started

Joe Witnesses came out of the evangelical church.

Why? He was not of us in the 1st

place. The guy who started the Mormons

came out of the local evangelical Church of his day.

Why? Because he never was a Christian

in the 1st place. That's what John is pointing out

to us and that's what he wants us to understand.

Verse 28 He says, look, the children abide in him so that

when he appears we may have confidence and not shrink back

from him. In the same way at his coming.

If you know that he is righteous, you know that

everyone who practice righteousness is born of him, he

said. You know God is righteous, so

everyone who practice righteousness is born of God.

That's how you tell who the Christians are and who are not.

By the way, John in his letter doesn't tell you how to get

saved, but he tell you who to save people are, and the first

person that we have to look at is ourselves.

Do I measure up to what John has laid out here for us?

And I love that word. Practice, he said.

The one who practice righteousness is born of God.

See, the difference between practice and perfection is what

we call humanity. You and I practice

righteousness. We are not perfected in it yet.

We are still learning how to do because there are times that sin

would come up. But what does How does practice

show itself? I am.

I'm doing more that is righteous than I'm doing more that is

sinful. So that's what he's talking

about. He wants us to understand that

that the person who practice righteousness is born of him.

Then we get to chapter 3 and he says see how great a love the

Father has bestowed upon us, That we would be called the

children of God. Think of that.

God, the creator of the universe, the creator of

everything there is, the giver of every good and perfect gift

allows you and me to be called his child, He says.

Look how great a love the Father has restored upon us that he

that we would be called the children of God and search we

are. For this reason the world does

not know us because it did not know Him.

Beloved, now we are the children of God, and it is not yet

appeared to what we should be. But we know that when He appears

we will be like him, because we will see Him just as He is.

And everyone who has this hope fixed himself, excuse me, have

this hope fixed on him. Purifies himself just as he is

peer. That's how you know he's talking

to Christians. You'd never tell a Sinner to

purify himself. But how do you and I purify

ourselves? Let's go back to that thing

about practicing righteousness. I should be practicing more

righteousness in a day today than I was last year.

This time, if I am, not, there's a problem in my life.

So that's what he's talking about, he says.

Anyone who has this hope fixed up on him.

What is the hope? An assured expectation.

Something God has promised to us, but we have not received it

yet. I have the assured expectation

that I will spend eternity in heaven with him.

I haven't received that yet, but as I live here on this earth, I

want to line myself up more with that heavenly walk than with an

earthly walk. And that's what he is, He's

bringing us to understand. In verse four, he says everyone

who practice sin also practice lawlessness.

Notice the word practice again. If you see in your life or in my

life more sin than righteousness, there's a

problem, he says, and sin is lawlessness.

You know that he appeared in order to take away sins, and in

him there is no sin. No one who abides in him sins.

Now sin has an S on it sins. You could take that word.

Practice again. It's not talking about

perfection. But no one who abides in him

will practice sin, and in him there is no sin, No one whose

sin has seen him or know him. No one who practice sin has seen

God or knows God. Again, I told you, John doesn't

tell you how to get saved here. He just tell you who the saved

folks are. He gives you an area where we

can line ourselves up to look at the word of God and ask and ask

ourselves the question, how am I doing?

Let the children make sure that no one deceives you.

Now why would he put that in right here?

Because, see, there was those out there that were saying,

well, you know, it really doesn't matter how you live down

here. Because see, the flesh is one

thing, but the Spirit is another.

It really doesn't matter. John says.

It does matter if you practice sin.

You do not know him and you have not seen him.

Let no one fool you. The one who practice

righteousness is righteous, just as he is righteous.

The one who practice sin is of the devil and the devil has

sinned from the beginning. The Son of God appeared for this

purpose to destroy the works of the devil.

The one who is born of God. Excuse me, the one who is born

of God will. I'm sorry, no one who is born of

God practice sin because his seed abides in him and he cannot

sin because he is born of God. The one who has been born of God

will not practice in because the seed of God is in us.

God gives us His Holy Spirit to live within us, and the Holy

Spirit is there to guide us through this life and to tell us

there's a temptation coming your way.

Look away or step away. You don't have to follow that

temptation. That's what the Holy Spirit does

in our lives. So he wants us to understand

that verse 10 is my favorite verse in First John.

He says by this, the children of God and the children of the

devil are obvious. Obvious what?

What? What does that mean?

If I told you that Tim was sitting down over here, you guys

would say, hey, that's obvious. We all see that.

That's what it's talking about. You don't have to wonder if a

person is a child of God or not, he said.

The children of God and the children of the devil are

obvious. Let me give you another clue.

There's only two fathers when it comes to the human race.

Either God is your father or the devil is your father.

There's not a third alternative. Talking to Guy on the bus one

day brought this idea up of there's only two, he says, I

have a third one. You have a third one, he said,

Yeah, I said, well, what is that third one consist of?

He says I'm still searching to see who I would be.

I said that means you're under the child of the devil.

Yeah, there's not a third one. And don't let anybody fool you

that there is the children of God and the children of the

devil, and they are obvious. Remember the conversation Jesus

had with the Pharisees and John chapter 8 three times in in in

John 8 · chapter mention

In that chapter he said you were of your father.

Only the third time did he identify who the father was.

He said you were of your father, the devil.

What did he base that on? He said to them you claim to be

Abraham's children. He said Abraham would have never

tried to kill me, but you tried to kill me so he could look at

their lives, what they were doing, and say to them you are

of your father, the devil, because you were doing what the

devil tried to do from the first day Jesus showed up on there

that was to destroy him. Jesus could share this with them

that they might understand who he is.

Then we get to 1st John 4. Beloved, do not believe every

spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are of God

because many false prophets have gone out into the world.

By this you will know the Spirit of God.

Every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the

flesh is from God. Now let's talk about that Jesus

Christ has come in the flesh. What does that mean?

That means that they believe that Jesus Christ came in the

exact form, as the Bible says that he is Jehovah Witnesses

says that Jesus is a God, but he is not the God.

He's not the Son of God. He is a God.

And therefore God created him first and then let him create

everything else. But the Bible says about Jesus

Christ, everything was created by him.

Now, if he was created, then that would take away everything.

He could not have been created 1st and then create everything

because you would have him over here being created.

And he didn't do that. He was God in the flesh from the

very beginning, and He created everything.

The Scripture is clear on that. But see, they come along and

they want to tell you, no, that's not Him.

So there's we believe in Jesus Christ.

Do they believe in Him as the Scripture has described him?

No, they do not. And by the way, there's not

another religion out there that does not another one that would

believe the way that the Bible would describe him.

So he wants us to know this, that we are to test the spirits.

So what does that mean? That means when you hear a

message, whether it's from here or anywhere else, test that

message by the scripture to see if it is the truth of the

scripture. If it is, then that person is

following Christ. If it is not then they are not

following Christ. He goes on to say verse three

and every spirit that does not confess that that Jesus is from

God. This is the spirit of

Antichrist. Then he goes on to say you've

heard that Antichrist is coming, but I want to tell you that many

Antichrist is already in the world.

Anti just simply means against. There are many people out there

poking themselves in a religious garb but appointing to another

Christ instead of the Christ of the scriptures.

And he wants us to understand this.

By the way, sometime in your spare time, read first John

1 John 4 · chapter mention

chapter 4 and you're going to pick up on some things.

The word you, us, we shows up over and over again.

And then the word they and them again.

He's making a comparison. We would be the believers.

They and them would be the outsiders.

He never throws a third person in here.

He wants you to see clearly there's a comparison of two.

We do this, the world doesn't listen to us.

Why? Because they are the world.

But the believer will listen to us.

Why? Because we are in this together,

and that's what he is pointing out to us, that we can know

this. Because as he brings this to us,

he wants us to understand, to know the difference between the

spirit of truth and the spirit of error.

We must do that. We must be sharp enough to do

that. And by the way, when the Jehovah

Witnesses and woman come by your house, stop pretending you're

not home. Get your Bible.

Meet them at the door. By the way, the other day I told

you when she stopped by my house, I didn't know she was

coming. So I'm at the door without my

weapon. As soon as my wife hears you

over witnesses, she go get my Bible and stick it right here in

my back. So she wanted me to be equipped.

So she comes up, she brings the Bible.

She just lays my back. I just read back and get it.

And now I can preach them from the description.

Do not pretend you're you're not home.

Don't do that. That's a mission field that God

is bringing to your door. Answer that door and speak to

them and share with them. Chapter 4, verse 19.

We love because he first loved us.

If anyone says I love God and yet hate his brother, he is a

liar. But the one who does not love

his brother, whom he has seen, cannot love God, whom he has not

seen. And this commandment we have

from him that the one who loves God must also love his brother.

And by the way, that's not talking about my identical twin

brother, Okay. That's talking about all of you

is my brothers and sisters in Christ.

Now, fortunately for me, my identical twin brother is a

Christian, is a pastor Okay. So.

But that's what he's telling me. He's not talking about family

here. He's talking about the family of

God. And notice what he says about

us. He says we must love each other.

That's that's not an option. He wants to bring that to us

that we can understand that. First, John Chapter 5.

John 5 · chapter mention

We're just about to get to where we wanted to be for the night.

Everyone who believes in Jesus. Excuse me, everyone that

believed that Jesus is the Christ has been born of God.

In that phrase, I want you to notice 2 verbs.

Everyone who believes that's a verse and that verse is

continuing. It's not a one time shot.

Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God.

Now that's another verb born. That verse is in the perfect

tense, meaning it happened at a time back Yonder and it is still

true today. It's not continually happened.

The first one is continually happened.

What does that mean? That means I continue to believe

in Jesus every day. Okay.

But where this salvation happened, salvation happened

when I was born of God. A1 time act in my life and your

life whenever that was. But because that one time act

has happened in our lives then every day we continually to

believe it doesn't matter for somebody brings something new on

the scene or not. That doesn't change the fact

that what we believe. When I was working at Edison,

somebody brought in. So Tom, I want you to take a

look at this new religion that has come up, he said.

Have you ever heard of it? It was called Christ Adelphians.

I had never heard of it before, but the last time I was at the

LA Counter Fair they had a booth out there.

So he said what do you know about Mr. Nothing?

He said, well, let me bring you something tomorrow and then you

read it and tomorrow is our Bible study and you can tell me

what do you think of it in Bible study?

So you did. The way you become a Christian

in that group is over accumulation of time and

knowledge. You keep learning and then you

will reach a point to where God would say, OK, you can you're

not a believer. So we got the Bible study.

He said, Tom, do you have a chance to read that yet?

He said what do you think about it?

I said it's a cult. He said yesterday you didn't

know anything about him, but today you call him a cult.

Why is that? Because you brought me what they

believed, and when I read what they believe is contrary to

Scripture, I don't need to know anything else about them.

They are a cult and therefore they are not to be followed, he

said. But they give good Bible

studies. I said no.

They may give good talks, but they don't give a good Bible

study. It would be impossible for a

cult to do that. And everyone who loves the

Father loves the child that is born of him.

Verse two, Chapter 5. By this we know that we love the

children of God. When we love God and follow His

commandments, there's that word again.

You're not just to love God, you're to love Him and follow

His commandments. If you have a problem following

His commandments, then there's a problem with loving God.

He brings this to us that we might understand that.

And then he says by this we know that we love the children of

God. So that's why we love each

other. By the way, our team that's down

in Argentina, I can tell you already that they have met some

believers down there, end up on meeting the believers.

It's almost as if they've known them already.

Why? Because we share in common this

thing called fellowship, this relationship that we have in

God. And wherever you are around the

world, you may not even be able to speak their language, but you

know that you're believers and you have that fellowship

together, he says. For this is love of God, that we

keep His commandments. He keeps bringing us back to

that point. This is the love of God that we

keep His commandments. By the way, there's nothing

emotional about that. You just have to do what the

scripture tells us to do, and he brings it out, and he lays this

out for us. Then he says, and his

commandments are not burdensome. What would be a burden if you

gave me 200 pounds on my back and told me I had to walk with

it? That would be a bird.

He's saying that his commandments are not burdensome.

For whoever has been born of God overcomes the world, and this is

the victory that overcomes the world.

One of John's favorite word, this victory thing.

Think it's used 23 times in the New Testament?

John uses it. Eighteen.

Of those 23. He just comes back to the fact

that you and I, we are victors and we have overcome the world.

Then he says something that's interesting.

He says we have overcome the world.

By our faith, we have overcome the world.

By our faith, Now there's two types of faith.

It could be my faith in Christ and I'm overcoming the world by

that. But I don't think that's what

he's talking about. Look at Jude Three, he said.

Beloved, while I was making every effort to write to you

about our common salvation, I felt the necessity to write to

you, appealing that you would contend earnestly for the faith

that was once and for all handed down to the Saints.

He's talking about the faith that Christ produced in us.

That's what he's saying. We have overcome the world by

the faith that Christ has implanted in us.

And when we see that, we understand that Acts Chapter 6,

Acts 6 · chapter mention

verse seven says the word of God kept spreading and the number of

the disciples continued to increase greatly in Jerusalem.

And many of the priests were becoming obedient to the faith.

That's what you're talking about, many of the priests.

Now what does that mean? I mean, that's a little phrase.

It's just thrown in here. Think about the priest.

How did the priest make his living from the temple and from

the sacrifice that everybody brought in?

He says, Now many of the priests believe, What does that mean?

No more food from the temple. They now had to get a job and

start to work and do the whole thing.

But he says many of the priests believed in the faith.

And I love how they now he He explains it here, becoming

obedient to the faith. See, there's one thing to say.

I have faith. There's another thing to be

obedient to the faith. And that's what he is bringing

to us here that he wants us to understand.

Verse five, Chapter 5. The one who says I've overcome

the world. Who is the one who overcomes the

world but the one who believed that Jesus is the Son of God?

Again, when you hear that phrase, the one who believes

that Jesus is the Son of God is talking about believing in Jesus

Christ as the Bible has described him.

He wants us to understand that that's how it is that we come to

know him. Verse 6.

This is the one who came by water and blood, Jesus Christ

not by water only, but with the water and with the blood.

It is the Spirit who testifies because the Spirit is true.

What is John telling us here? He says Jesus Christ has been

identified by the Father in three ways, By the water, by the

blood, and by the Spirit. And when we see this, then we

get to understand what it is that he's talking about.

So look at Mark's Gospel, chapter one, he said John the

Baptist appeared in the wilderness preaching A baptism

of repentance for the forgiveness of sins.

And all the country of Judah was coming out to him and all the

people of Jerusalem, and they were being baptized by him in

the Jordan River. Confessing their sins.

John was closed and Campbell hair and wore a leather belt

around his waist, and his diet was locust and wild honey, and

he was preaching, saying, after me comes one who is mightier

than I, and I am not fit to bend down and tie his latches of his

sandals. I baptize you with water, but

there's one who's coming who would baptize you with the Holy

Spirit. Matthew, chapter 3, starting at

Matthew 3 · chapter mention

verse 13. Then Jesus arrived in Galilee at

the Jordan, coming to John to be baptized by him.

But John tried to prevent him, saying, I have the need to be

baptized by you, and yet you are coming to me.

But Jesus answered and said unto him, Allow it at this time.

For in this way it is fitting for us to fulfill all

righteousness. Then he allowed him, And after

he was baptized, Jesus came up immediately out of the ward, and

behold, the heavens open. And he saw the Spirit of God

descending upon him like a dove sitting up on him.

And behold, a voice from heaven saying, This is my beloved Son

in whom I am pleased. This is the baptism.

He has now been baptized, and have been presented to the

world, not for his sins, but for those that would be put on him

by us. And he is baptized and he is now

announced to those around. This is my beloved Son in whom I

am well pleased. This was the Spirit of God.

The voice of God announcing Jesus Christ is God, and God is

well pleased in him. Then when we moved to the blood,

Matthew chapter 27 starting at verse 45 he said Now from the

Matthew 27 · chapter mention

6th hour darkness fell up on all the land until the 9th hour.

And about the 9th hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice

saying Eli, Eli they may support the name.

This is my God why have you forsaken me?

And some of those who were standing there when they heard

it. They said this man is calling

out for Elijah and immediately one ran and was taking a sponge

and filled it with sour wine and put it on the reef and gave him

the drink. But the rest of them said, let's

see if Elijah will come and save him.

And Jesus cried out again with a loud voice and he gave up the

spirit and behold, the veil of the temple was torn in two from

top to bottom. Why is top to bottom significant

here? Show the man didn't do it.

There's no need to keep the holy of holies hidden from mankind

because Christ has now paid the full penalty for our sins.

No more need for for the holy of holy.

So the rip from top to bottom says the rock split.

All of this is an action taken by God to announce to those

present This is my beloved Son, and I am pleased in him.

And when John sees this, he is letting us know that this is the

way that God has testified of his Son while he was here on

earth. For there are three First, John

57. For there are three that

testifies the Spirit and the water and the blood, and the

three are in agreement. There was nothing at the baptism

that contradicted anything at the crucifixion, and the Spirit

making the announcement did not change any of that, he said.

They are in agreement. That's why we see the Scripture

written over these 1500 years still all pointing in the same

direction. And when we see that, we give

glory to God, because this is what God has brought to us, that

we might clearly understand the things that he has shared with

us. And when we take the scriptures

and we read it, we find out it's not enough just to read it, we

must live it. And that's what we have been

called to do. Every day that God gives us on

the face of this earth is a day that we can get the word out

about the Christ. Let's be faithful in doing that,

that we would fulfill the things that God has left us here to do.

You know, there are many commands in the Bible.

Be fruitful and feel the earth is one of those.

Okay, love thy neighbor as thyself.

You can go down the list. Just keep going on the things

that the Bible tells us to do. We only do those things because

he has left us here for one purpose and that's to get the

word out about him. Because see, if I'm not loving

you, then how the world going to believe that there is love in

the church or love from God. That's why he tells us to love

with one another. I love the verse that says bear

with one another. See that's that's an

acknowledgement that we're not all there yet.

But he says bear with one another.

I teach Charlie all the time, Charlie, you have to bear with

me further. They come up most of the time in

our families for for their believers.

Okay, believe it or not, as as dressed up as I look on Sunday

morning, Donna has to bear with me sometimes.

That's what we're called to do with each other.

Why? So when people see us together

and we stop to share the gospel with them, they're not actually

questionable. Why are you acting different now

than you're acting later on? Okay.

That's what this thing is, and that's what we call to do.

And we need to keep in mind that we have one purpose on this

earth. Now, there are many other things

that we may do while we're here, but one purpose that we may get

the word out about the Christ. When we do that, then we have

fulfilled what God has called us to do and left us here.

For let's pray, Father, we thank you for your great grace toward

us. We thank you for Jesus Christ

our Lord. We thank you for your word and

how plain you have made it. Father, help us to be obedient

to your word that others might see, and acts of the hope that

is within us. We thank you for our time

together. Tonight we pray for our

Argentina team as they have one more day on the field and then

the journey back home. We commit them to you and the

word of your grace. We thank you for our time in

Jesus name. Amen.